


Where Did These Apples Come From? Their Trees Are Not Here

by auwana



Category: Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: All the Avengers have kids and haven't told anyone, Minor Clint Barton/Phil Coulson/Natasha Romanov, Minor Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Multi, Starts around the same time Avengers happens, and SHIELD is kinda peeved they can't figure out who the Power Rangers are, focus on the OCs, past Phil Coulson/Melinda May - Freeform, those kids are now teenage super heroes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-10-30
Updated: 2016-03-03
Packaged: 2018-02-23 04:56:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 13,277
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2534957
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/auwana/pseuds/auwana
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>So this is about the Avengers having kids before they were Avengers, or involved with SHIELD. They've kept their kids a secret to protect them. Then those kids get chosen to be Power Rangers.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Ya gotta have an origin story, right?

**Author's Note:**

> This is an OC focused story. The Avengers show up, but this is about living with them as parents. They become more involved as the story progresses. Most of this story is written, so it's just a matter of y'all wanting more.
> 
> If anyone wants to help me cast these kids, I will give credit and all the virtual hugs :) And a beta-reader would be nice.

Viktoriya is the daughter of Natasha and Winter Soldier. She's being raised by another Red Room assassin who found a different way to break free from their makers. She's 16 at the start of all this.

Tony accidentally knocked up a chick 14 years ago and ended up with twins, Jennifer and Michael. Their mother raises them, and told Tony only so he'd know of his spawn. 

Alexander is Clint's 16-year-old mistake. He was gone by the time the chick learned she was pregnant, but he found out. Clint doesn't see him often, but does send money their way along with random things he run across while globe hoping in the name of SHIELD. 

Bruce suffered broken condom syndrome as well, ending up with Ethan 14 years ago. He was probably the most present parent of the group until his green accident.

I'm giving Steve a younger sister, who lived on and had her own family after he froze. He ends up with a great grand niece, Jacquelyn. She's 16 at the start of the story. 

Ariel is Phil and Melinda May's oops baby, because I will use that friendship to my advantage. They're the most present parents, though she lives with Melinda in the beginning. She's 17 in the beginning.

Jacquelyn is the only planned kid. SHIELD only knows about her and Ethan. 

 

 

 

The first monster attack was in San Francisco. The city was thrown into a panic as strange clay men ran through downtown, led by a large, upright, flying ape in gold armor. For a moment, people wondered if the Avengers could make it across the country in time.

Then seven beams of light landed, revealing Earth's newest superheroes. 

The Power Rangers.

With the ancient power of the dinosaurs, the seven heroes put a stop to the rampage. When the main monster grew taller than any buildings around him, large robots in the colors and shapes of the Rangers power animals appeared to fight back. 

There was damage to the city, but it was superficial. Scorch marks from the battle of giants, a few busted benches and store fronts from the Putty Patrollers. 

After the battle, the group of teenagers were back in their new headquarters. 

Jen sat on the floor. "Holy. Shit."

Alex nodded. "Ditto."

Jackie stared at nothing. "Yeah."

Ethan raised a hand. "Uh, why'd you choose a fourteen year old runt as a superhero?"

The giant floating head smiled down at them. "A Power Ranger is more than strength of body, Ethan. Intelligence and the will to protect play important roles as well."

Vika nudged Ethan with a shoulder. "Hey, maybe we can figure something out and I could teach you a few things."

The smallest teen looked hopeful. "Really?"

"Yeah, why not? Pretty sure you don't want to get saved by us girls all the time."

Ethan gave her a nervous look. "I'm not gonna say that out loud?"

Ariel laughed. "Smart. I'll help, too."

Alex put an arm around Ethan. "Protip: These are girls. They fight dirty. Anything they teach you will probably get you in trouble if you use it on another person."

Ethan nodded once. "Got it."

Mike's watch beeped. "And that's our cue. Up, Jen, before Mom gets home."

"Fuck," Jackie muttered. "Parental units all around?"

Everyone nodded.

"Okay, um, cell phone and e-mail are out for me because my parentals check that," Ariel said.

"Tumblr," Ethan said. "It's all random people and if just so happen to be talking to each other..."

Jen pulled out a pen from her jacket pocket. "E-mails that you'll use to log in. Me an' Mike'll find everyone and we'll link from there."

Vika took the pen and quickly wrote on the other teen's arm.

Mike pulled out his own pen and handed it to Alex along with his hand. "I'll make us secure e-mails, maybe some kind of Power Ranger only cell phone."

Jackie looked at the twins as she wrote. "Are you guys way smarter than us?"

Jen laughed nervously. "I'm not gonna say that out loud?"

They quickly dispersed and did their best to pretend they hadn't just been given super powers by a mage stuck in a time warp.

It went over amazingly well, to all their surprise.

~

Seeing as how none of the children lived with their Avenger parents, nothing was suspected of their new responsibilities for a while. Ariel had the closest thing to a keen parental unit, but Melinda May spent long hours at the office and Ariel never brought home trouble.

The attacks happened all over the world. The team lost an hour of sleep some nights, teleporting out and back into their bedrooms. Their friendships with other classmates started to suffer because of their random need to leave suddenly. Alex was glad he didn't take up sports in high school so he wouldn't have to bail on them so much. So far, the attacks stuck to after school hours or weekends and nights. The team knew their luck wouldn't last long.

Ethan took to his martial arts training with glee. Jen and Mike started learning on their own as well as joining the training sessions. Alex had some basic skills, and he and Jackie used their brawling habits to their full advantage. They also studied together, with Jen and Mike tutoring Jackie and Alex. Ethan was a straight 'A' student, as we're Vika and Ariel.

In battles, Alex and Ariel led the team. Alex was the strategic brain due to his sports experience, and knew how to come at a horde of enemies. Ariel was best at making use of strengths and compensating for surprises. Mike, Jen and Ethan were the techs, creating new weapons and tools as needed. Jackie and Vika were happy to be the heavy hitters. All those two had to do was hit a monster until it stopped moving.

~

"We're distracted," Ariel said after a hard battle. The team wasn't functioning as well as it could. "Why are we distracted?"

Jackie flopped into the couch of the common room they set up in the Command Center. "Okay, you guys might not believe this even though we just totaled a giant boat monster, but my great grand uncle is Captain America, who's been missing for two days."

The others stated at her in shock.

"Yeah, I know, but the guy's not a gimmick and he had a little sister. We don't always see eye to eye, but he's family."

"Our dad's Tony Stark," Mike said slowly.

"Mine's Hulk, well, Bruce Banner," Ethan said softly.

Alex shrugged when they looked at him. "Mom's a nurse and I barely see my dad."

Vika shook her head and lied. "Mom's a teacher and I don't know my dad."

Ariel narrowed her eyes at the wall. "My parents work for the FBI. But what are the chances of half our team being related to the Avengers and the other half not?

Jackie looked up. "ZORDON!"

A holographic image of the mage in his Eltaran body appeared in the room. "Yes, Rangers?"

Mike snorted. "Don't act like you don't eavesdrop."

Zordon folded his hands into his sleeves. "You were chosen to be Rangers because you are destined for greatness. I did not choose you because of your parentage, though your particular parents have affected your fate."

The teens regarded him with a hint of suspicion.

Zordon sighed and sat between Jackie and Ethan on the couch. "Your knowledge and abilities are a result of your upbringing, you cannot deny that. That your parents are Avengers has only been recent."

"We're so dead when they find out," Mike said. "And they're gonna find out."

"But none of us live with them," Jackie said. "Except Ariel?"

Ariel rocked a palm back and forth. "They've told me they're FBI. Might be a lie. Thing is, as long as I don't get in trouble, I kinda have free reign."

Vika slumped on top of her in the large arm chair. "I'm waiting for Aunt Zoya to notice something's up. She's observent."

"Our dad isn't gonna notice any time soon," Jen said. "He's not a horrible dad, but he's not exactly the best."

Mike nodded. "We're pretty much his biggest secret."

"I haven't seen my dad since the accident," Ethan said. "I get letters and gifts and he did call for my last birthday."

"My parents work long shifts and are happy if I don't wind up in the principal's office," Jackie said. "Uncle visits once a week, but we're not buddies."

"Why not?" Ethan asked.

"He usually has a stick up his ass."

The teens snickered. Zordon was unimpressed.

"We can't ever tell out parents, can we?" Vika asked quietly, playing with Ariel's hemp bracelets.

"No," Zordon said, "I'm afraid not. They have to learn the secret on their own."

"What if the parents we live with find out?" Ethan asked. "They're gonna go straight to our Avenger parents."

Half the room groaned at the implication.

"Should such an event take place, it shall be dealt with at that time. For now, you must keep the secret."

"Yes, Zordon."

Ariel made a motioned with her hand. "Go back a bit to my first question. We're distracted because some of our parents are in trouble."

"Can we do anything?" Jen asked Zordon.

The old mage frowned at the table. "Only in the most extreme of circumstances can you aid your parents. The Ranger Corps deals only with those who use Gaxiona, which is the source of your own powers. However, as defenders of Earth themselves, if it looks as if there is no other course of action, you may step in to help."

"So we have to wait until the last moment," Alex said. "How'll we know when that'll be?"

Four slim bars appeared on the table. "You may monitor the situation with these. They will project holographic screens and can be used by voice or touch."

The four teens with known Avenger parents grabbed them up with various forms of thanks. Zordon stood and wished them luck before disappearing. They decided to go home before watching their parents so they wouldn't loose track of time.

Ariel, Vika and Alex cleaned up the mess of throw pillows before heading home themselves. Vika sat in her room for a long moment. She didn't like lying to her team. But her mother made her promise to keep her true parentage a secret above all else. So she would. Even if it meant losing her friends.


	2. In Which We Meet The Parents

"Ariel, I need to speak with you."

"Comin', Mom." The teen finished the sentence she was writing and pushed away from the desk. She slid on her socks through the doorway into the kitchen. "Wha-Dad!"

Phil chuckled at the hug he was greeted with and squeezed back. "Hey, kid."

"Baa, not a baby goat." She leaned around him when her nose caught scent of food. "You've bought fancy food." She leaned back, her arms still around him. "You have bad news."

"I told you she'd figure it out," Melinda muttered.

Ariel nodded sagely and stepped back. "Fast food when you've been gone a while, a puzzle or strategy game when you WILL be gone a while, and fancy food when you want my belly to weigh me down so I don't throw a temper tantrum."

Phil frowned. "You haven't thrown a tantrum since you were four."

"Because of foooood."

Melinda sat at the table. "Sit, Ariel, this is more important than bad."

She sat, leaning into her father. Melinda didn't begrudge Phil the physical contact since Ariel could be a contact leech with the parent she hadn't seen in a while.

Melinda smiled slightly. "The bad news is I'm going back into the field."

"It's my fault," Phil said immediately. "Your mother is actually one of the best people we have. If there's one person that can be trusted with the work that needs doing, it's her."

"I won't promise that this will be any different from before." Melinda was as serious as she could be. "I won't say I'll be home more often, I can't tell you this is safer than what I used to do."

"Then don't," Ariel said. "You guys haven't lied to me if you could help it. No point in starting."

Phil put his arm around her. "We are willing to change one thing, on a few conditions. You don't need to go back to your aunt and uncle's unless you want to."

Ariel looked at them both. "You're going to give your seventeen year old daughter free run of a Manhattan loft?"

Melinda shook her head. "We're giving our well behaved honor student a chance to learn better independence. You live in a secure building, and you're aware of your surroundings. The neighbors will be checking on you daily, and Jacob will drop in without warning."

"You won't have to worry about any of the bills," Phil said, "but we expect you to be responsible with the money we'll be giving you for food and any kind of emergency. If you don't pick up when we call, your excuse better be excellent."

The teen took more potatoes than was really necessary. "Don't screw up or you'll treat me like a kid. Got it."

Melinda smiled a little. "I expect you'll still have friends over. That's fine. Just don't let things get out of hand."

Ariel nodded. "Won't disappoint you like I did in second grade."

Phil stood and got them all beverages. "The plus side of that being we discovered you suffered from stage fright."

Melinda nodded. "And public speaking in general."

Ariel blew a raspberry. "I'm gonna eat all this food and you can't stop me."

A few hours later, with the daughter they didn't mean to have asleep on the couch between them, Phil looked over at Melinda. "Thank you. And I'm sorry."

She gave him a small smile. "Ditto."  
'  
Ariel teleported into the common room and flopped on the couch. Jen and Mike where there, being far too excited about the amount of tech they could play with and study.

"What's wrong?" Jen asked, not yet looking up from the Zord programming she was going through.

"Mom's going back into the field."

"Suckage," Mike said. "You going back to your aunt and uncle's?"

"No. The parentals are giving me a chance to see what being independent is like, minus the bill paying. And half the building will be keeping on me on top of Uncle Jacob popping by whenever he feels like it."

"It's still the place to yourself," Jen reminded. "You could ice cream for dinner."

Ariel grinned. "This is true."

Mike opened his Ranger cell. "This calls for all of us. We'll give you things to look forward to instead of worrying about how your parents will come home this time."

Jen whacked her brother across the head.

Ariel just snorted. "Doesn't matter, Jen, they admitted to being SHIELD."

The twins blinked. Ethan and Jackie teleported in at the same time and promptly glommed onto the oldest Ranger.

"Cuddle huddle!" Jackie rallied.

"G'off me!"

"Shut up and enjoy it."  
~  
Viktoriya didn't get to see her mother often. Once a year, if she was lucky. But she knew she was loved by both the woman who birthed her and the one that raised her. Zoya was actually an amazing parent and Vika couldn't be sure she'd ever wish to give Zoya up if it meant a life with her mother.

She was raised to be strong, smart, and capable. She was allowed to have fun, and didn't know much about the lives of the two women. She'd been picking up things here and there, as well as a few truths she'd been told when her questions got too insistent. 

Knowledge of her mother's life as Black Widow, and Zoya's as Cobra, was very recent. 

She felt horribly guilty for keeping her secret as a Power Ranger from them. She knew they'd want to know, they'd find a way to help. They wouldn't stop her, wouldn't offer to take her place. But there was always the chance that they'd react badly. That they would treat her like the child they let her be growing up. 

If keeping this secret meant keeping them in her life a little longer, she'd do it. She'd take what she could. The memories would keep her warm when they were all she had left.  
~  
Jackie popped a grape in her mouth. "Our parentals don't know their teammates have kids."

The other teens, in the same midst of homework and snacks, paused and looked up.

Jackie leaned back. "Think about it. Me an' Ariel live in the same city, uncle and her dad work together almost every day. Who better to look out for either of us? Or for us to have as friends?"

"Yeah," Ethan said, "but the rest of us are all mistakes. Yours are the only parents that meant for you to happen."

Mike snickered. "This is gonna be awesome when they find out. Can you imagine the shock?"

Jen shook her head. "Dad's reaction is gonna be, by the way, I made these two."

There were various snorts of amusement.

"We weren't told much about our Avenger parents," Ethan said. "We've been safer this way."

Vika nodded in agreement, though her secret still remained. "Their lives never affected yours."

Jackie tossed her pencil in the air. "And then we go lookin' for trouble. We're so grounded when they find out."

Ariel raised her hand. "Dead. I'm dead. Mom and Dad are gonna use my hide for a throw rug."

Alex smirked. "So when you get dirty they can take you outside and beat you?"

The co-leaders traded a high five while the others either groaned or laughed.

"These're our team leaders," Ethan muttered, leaning over his homework once more. "Be afraid. Be very afraid."


	3. A Brief Summary of Ooze

Alex was sprawled in a hammock in his backyard, looking through the Ranger Crops database on his iPad. As long as no one saw exactly what he was looking at, he just looked like a tech addicted teenager. He was paging through Zordon's old enemies, looking at the tactics used to destroy them in hopes of getting insight into Rita and Zedd.

That's how he learned of Ivan Ooze.

The reason Zordon had come to Earth six thousand years ago was to put down the tyrant. That was when he created Earth's first team. Those teenagers had won, but they only locked Ivan Ooze away. The monster was too powerful for them to outright destroy.

Alex put the coordinates of the prison into Google Earth and his eyes went wide. He tapped out a text as he headed for his room to teleport away. When he landed, Jen and Mike were already present. They pretty much spent any unsupervised time in the common room of the Command Center. Ariel and Ethan arrived, then Jackie. One of the table screens propped up and Vika's face appeared, headphones over her ears.

"What's today's raid?" she asked in the code that meant she couldn't teleport in. She was on her laptop in her bedroom, then, pretending to play World of Warcraft.

"Zordon, we might have a problem," Alex said as he brought all the information up on the holo-emitters, knowing the info would pop up on Vika's screen.

The hologram of their mentor popped into existence. "What have you found, Alexander?"

The teen blew up the satellite image a the construction site. "This is where Earth's first Power Rangers buried Ivan Ooze."

The others held their questions, knowing the answers would come.

Zordon's frown was deep. "The proximity alarms must have been damaged. Tonight, you will retrieve the prison and we will find a new way to deal with it." He looked at Alex. "I will leave you to explain what you have learned while I prepare."

Alex nodded and told his teammates what he knew. 

Several hours later, the seven teenagers landed in the dark construction site. Mike, Jen and Ethan quickly set up the equipment needed to bring up the prison cell while the others kept watch for security guards or trouble.

"This doesn't look ominous at all," Vika muttered when the dust settled.

Jackie nodded. "Yeah, I'm creeped out."

Ariel was about to signal Zordon when blood red lightening struck the ground at their feet.

"Ah, Rangers! Thank you for doing us this favor!"

The team got back to their feet quickly as Rita, Zedd and Goldar stepped up to the prison. Goldar attacked, but Alex, Jackie and Jen got around him to go after Rita and Zedd. Rita stabbed her staff into the ground to set a fissure between them and cause Jackie to fall in. Alex hit the ground as he grabbed her arms, and Jen helped him haul her back up.

Purple lightening lit the area as Ivan Ooze was released from his prison.

"Does the name Zordon of Eltar ring any bells?" Zedd asked with a hint of glee.

Ivan took a deep breath and slowly turned to take in the seven stunned teens. "And the kids he gets to do his dirty work? Yes, I do." He smirked. "Meet my kids!"

Two dozen Ooze minions leapt from the power in his hands and the team found themselves fighting hard as the quartet of evil left.

"It's Morphin' Time!" Ariel called.

"Mastodon!"

"Pterodactyl!"

"Triceratops!" 

"Sabertooth tiger!" 

"Stegosaurus!"

"Velociraptor!"

"Tyrannosaurus!"

The fight was the hardest ones with mere minions to date. The ooze men didn't go down with a simple strike to the 'Z' like Zedd's putties. The Rangers took a beating even as the took out their opponents one at a time.

Jen felt relief when she saw ooze harmlessly leak out from under the concrete slab they'd dropped on the last bunch. "Let's get back to the Command Center."

Even as the other's agreed, their uniforms frizzled out of existence.

Ethan looked at his friends. "I've got a bad feeling about this."

They initiated teleportation and felt no comfort when they landed outside the Command Center.

"This isn't supposed to happen unless teleporting in is considered too dangerous," Mike said as he, Alex and Vika forced the doors to slide open. "Oh, gross, what's on our hands?"

Vika held her hands under Ariel's iPhone. "Ooze."

"Shit."

The teens ran into the dim base and dodged damage and sparks until they were in the main hub.

It was a disaster.

"No. No no no!" Jackie ran towards the base that was supposed to hold Zordon's time warp. There was no column of lit grey smoke. Just a bed of crystals. "Zordon!"

"Rangers.... It is good to see you safe..."

"How do we fix this?" Jen asked, voice high with worry.

"There is no way...the powers...the zords...all of it...gone..."

"There has to be something," Ethan pleaded.

"I'm sorry...Ivan Ooze...has won..."

Vika's hands fisted and Alex put a hand over one of them, squeezing tight. 

"Rangers..."

Mike and Ariel ran to Alpha's battered robot body and cleared debris off him before helping him up.

"There may be a power that can stand up to Ivan Ooze. But the journey is very dangerous."

Alex glanced at his team. "We don't have a choice."

The robot shuffled over to a mostly intact console. "I might be able to pour the last bit of power into the teleportation crystals. But there won't be anything left to bring you back."

Ariel tugged at Jackie's belt loop. "Then we don't fail."

"Good luck, Rangers."

After a false start, the Rangers found themselves on Phaedos.  
'  
Vika braced her hands on Alex's should and arm. "On three. One-" She popped his shoulder back in.

He let loose a storm of curses as he fought off dizziness and dark spots. "You said three!"

The lithe brunette shrugged. "You would've tensed."

The bodies of Tengu littered the beach around them. And then Dulcia appeared.  
'  
"Alexander, you are the falcon, winged lord of the skies."

"Fierce and unstoppable, Jacquelyn, you are the bear."

"You are the wolf, Michael, cunning and swift."

"Agile Viktoriya, light as a feather, you are the crane.

"Ethan, powerful, smart, you are the ape."

"Adaptive and confident, Jennifer, you are the shark."

"Ariel, sturdy and determined, you are the hyena."  
'  
On Earth, the Avengers arrived in the city of Angel Grove to investigate a man of purple ooze turning people into slaves. If Clint was told to stay as far back as possible, no one brought up their suddenly silent archer.  
'  
Mike pulled Jackie into his arms and didn't comment on the tears he could feel on his shoulder. Across from him, the triptych stood close together, no space between them. Ethan and Jen were holding hands next to him. 

And Zordon lay before them. 

They were too late.

"No," Alex growled. "No, this is -NOT- how it ends." He looked at his friends. "We have power. It's ours to control. We can do this."

Ariel and Vika nodded and stepped away. Ethan shuffled closer to Ariel and Jackie managed to pull herself away from Mike. They raised their arms, fingertips touching. They focused on their new spirit animals, imagined power filling Zordon. 

Mike felt all at once too heavy and too light. He peeked out of one eye and stared in wonder. Light and power poured out of them in flurries of glitter and swirled above Zordon's body. It coalesced and blinded them.

Then Zordon's time warp was back in place.

The flurries zoomed around the hub and Command Center, repaired Ivan Ooze's damage. It was if the attack never happened.

Zordon smiled down at them, proud and pleased. Mike grinned. Being a Power Ranger wasn't easy. But it was worth it.  
~  
"Ethan James Weston, where have you been!"

Ethan winced at the pitch of his mother's voice.

"Oh, God, what happened to you?"

He glanced down at himself and cringed. Fighting Tengu on an alien beach than traipsing for hours over said alien planet didn't leave him in the best condition. He swallowed and looked up at his mother. He had no idea how he was gonna talk himself out of this one. But he was damn well going to try.  
'  
"Explain yourself."

Vika's eyes widened and she dropped her house keys when her mother appeared in the doorway. 

Natasha frowned and reached for her, tilting her face up to the porch light. Her eyes grew fierce. "Who hurt you?"

Vika gulped. "Uh, inside, please?" Holy shit, she was so dead.  
'  
"Jacquelyn Grace Rogers, you better have a damn good reason for being missing for twenty eight hours."

The Yellow Ranger glared up at her father. He couldn't know the truth, but he wouldn't buy a single lie. So. No excuses, just brattiness.   
'  
Alex sighed with relief when he found his house empty and his cellphone lacking any missed calls or messages. His mother was still in New Orleans, then, and hadn't noticed he was gone.   
'  
Jen and Mike traded glances at the sight of their angry mother and decided to spin a tale so unlikely she'd give up and just ground them. Horrible thing to do to the woman, but it was better this way.  
'  
Ariel collapsed on the couch in her apartment, grateful she'd moved out of her mother's place when she had. There was no way her parents would've let her leave their presence without learning the truth.

She could only hope her friends didn't suffer too much for saving the world.  
~  
Before dawn, Vika had to tell her mother and Zoya about being a Power Ranger. Neither Red Room operative would let her leave the kitchen table until they read the truth in her eyes. She didn't divulge the identities of her teammates, or that some of them were the children of the Avengers.

Natasha decided her friend and daughter would be moving to New York City. Vika, soon to graduate high school, would be coming upon a lot of free time to learn everything the Black Widow and Cobra could teach her.

Ethan was grounded for the foreseeable future. He and Mike built a hologram to take his place in his room when he had to fight. 

Jen and Mike spent two weeks in the company of books. No electronics unless it was for school, and their mother monitored that with an eagle eye. The sixteen year olds were grounded during that time period as well.

Jackie was going to be spending the rest of the school year grounded. It was only going to be for a month, but she was needed to fight and her punishment only extended every time she went missing. Then her parents made the mistake of bringing her uncle into it. Words were shouted on her part and she was pretty sure no one would be making the mistake of asking Steve to make her see reason. Mike and Ethan offered to make her a hologram, but she refused. She didn't tell them why. Ethan suspected she was waiting to get kicked out, just so she wouldn't have to hide and fight her parents anymore.

Ariel and Alex felt bad for getting away without hurting their relationships with their parents. Ariel, the oldest at nineteen, had far more free reign than any of them. Alex was eighteen and his mother trusted him enough to leave him alone and unchecked for days on end.

One of five Avenger relatives knew the truth. It was only a matter of time now.


	4. Zeo Rangers, Time Traveling Extraordinaires

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is around the third year of them being Power Rangers.

Natasha looked at the man sitting across from her. He was and wasn't what she remembered. But, it'd been eighteen years since they'd seen each other last. The key things were the same, his hair, his arm. But the look in his eyes... 

Steve wouldn't be getting his best friend back. But maybe the soldier could learn to be friends with the man James Barnes was now.

It would still be a while before Natasha told James of his child. Vika was a mistake, would only muddle him more. He currently was in no position to be a father. Maybe, once he recovered more, she would reveal what had happened the last time they'd been with each other.

She stood and left. She had to tell her daughter the news.  
'  
When Vika could get away, she went straight to the Command Center and squeezed between Jen and Mike. The twins didn't question it, just adjusted to work around her while providing her need for physical contact.

Half an hour later, she shook herself and ate the cookies and milk put in front of her. She wanted to tell them her father was alive. But they would ask who he was, and she couldn't tell them that. She wanted to trust them with the truth, all her truths, they way Ethan, Mike, Jen and Jackie trusted her. But... 

Jen laced her fingers through Vika's and squeezed for a moment. Vika squeezed back. The time would come. For now, she had teammates. That would have to be enough.  
~  
Mike flipped through the idea book he'd show their father when the truth came out. All the things he reversed engineered from Ranger tech, redesigned with Earth materials and science. A slew of ideas that could help Stark Industries move even further from the business of war.

Jen had one of her own, he knew. They weren't even seventeen yet, but once they were eighteen, they'd be asking their father if they could work with him. For him. Be involved. Maybe they could never come out as Tony Stark's illegitimate kids, but they could still leave a legendary legacy in their wake.

"Hey, look, my spawn."

Mike's head snapped up in surprise. Tony leaned in the doorway of his bedroom, grinning madly. He quickly tossed the book closed and onto his bed before leaping off his bed to grab his dad in a hug. Tony chuckled and squeezed back.

"I thought you said it'd be a few more months?"

"Rhodey's covering for me." The Colonel knew about them because he'd been the one to hear all about it from a scared shitless Tony. "I owe him a jet or something if he has to lie to Captain America."

"I'd be more afraid of lying to Pepper."

"Yeah, but Pep just gets angry. Steve ever finds out you lied to him, and the disappointed look is soul crushing."

Mike grinned. "So those of us without souls are safe."

Tony snorted and ruffled his hair. "I told you selling it for a PS4 wasn't worth it."

"You're just jealous."

"Yeah. That's it. Jealous. Where's your sister?"

Mike leaned down the hall. "Jen's probably drooling over pictures of-!"

Jen's door flew open, but her retort died on her lips. "Dad!"

Tony kissed the top of her head before pulling away. "Right, one of you order pizza, the other some take out, and then show me all the things your mother doesn't think you're doing."  
~  
Alex applied to a ton of colleges, and accepted the invite to NYU without a second thought. Three of his teammates were already in the city. Jen and Mike were having thoughts of getting into a New York City based school as well. They'd find a way to bring Ethan to them when the time was right.

Ariel was unsure about having them all in one place, but decided the benefits outweighed the inevitable. Their Avenger parents were bound to keep a closer track of them in the same city. She would rather they put off the big reveal. But she only controlled them on the battlefield. And even then...  
~  
"Damn, Eth, you're tiny."

The child sized Ethan hauled off and kicked Mike in the shin. Seven year old Mike cursed and hid behind his sister.

"Alright, guys, let's fucking focus," Ariel growled, the swear word sounded weird out of her ten year old mouth.

Little Vika crossed her arms and glared up at Zordon. Next to her, Alex frowned at his grubby hands. This wasn't going to be an easy fix.

Thankfully, Zordon had an idea.  
'  
Jackie cracked on the glow stick and looked around at the obvious industrial complex. It was cold and empty, but once housed something huge. She looked down and gapped.

Hydra.

The symbol was large beneath her feet, but covered in dust. It'd been years since anyone had been here. She swallowed against the chill that had nothing to do with the cold and focused what little power was left within her. When she had a direction, she hurried for the Zeo Crystal. This was no place to hang around.  
'  
Alex landed in a small metal container. He hopped up and blinked. There was a note at his eye level, and his red crystal.

[You're in the future, kid. Remember this date.] Alex wrote the date on his hand. [Now go save the world.]  
'  
Ethan whined when he saw the black crystal high in the rock wall. With a huff, he found hand and footholds and started climbing. He might've been in shape at seventeen, but at the moment he was as scrawny as ever.

He took a moment to catch his breath on the narrow ledge beneath his crystal. When he reached for it, the Zeo Crystal didn't budge. He cursed and yanked.

The Crystal came free.

The ledge gave way.

Ethan had a moment to hope he'd be teleported away when he landed too soon.

The green thumb he was staring at was both familiar and not.

Ethan got to his hands and knees, crystal firmly in his grip, and stared at the large green eyes of the Hulk. His father. Feeling the Power pull at him, he smiled. "Thanks."

Then he was gone.  
'  
Vika scowled as she looked around the too pink room. Still, she made sure there was not a hint of green anywhere before leaving. That was too stereotypical for her. She honestly didn't understand why parents did that, or why girls liked that kind of pink and princesses. 

She froze in the hall of an obvious military facility. Though she heard no alarm, she felt the sudden urge to hurry. The Power guided her to a room full of carefully organized artifacts.

Just as she was about to grab her crystal, a large hand wrapped around her wrist and whirled her about.

The man in a lab coat frowned. "Кто ты?"

Before she could answer, the door behind the man swung open and a single gunshot rang out. Vika ducked under a table as the man fell, but no one entered. She pointedly did not look at the dead body as she grabbed her green crystal and vanished.  
'  
Jen and Mike did NOT like doing risky things without the other. Still, they had to go their separate ways to retrieve their Zeo Crystals.

Jen's Pink crystal lay in a crate on an old ship. If she'd taken note of the shipping labels on a table, she would've been surprised. Or maybe not.

Mike cursed as he looked around the empty crown room of the Statue of Liberty. When he boosted himself him up to look out the window. He gapped. The world was very different.

"I believe this is yours, young Stark."

Mike spun around and looked up at Thor. "Oh. Yeah. Thanks."

"Fight well, young warrior."  
'  
Ariel wrinkled her nose at the smell of unwashed human and humidity. Still, she pulled her hat low over her head and waited for the voices to pass before tiptoeing towards her crystal. The purple light flared among the jewels on the table.

"How'd you get in here?"

She didn't turn at her father's confused and angry voice. He wouldn't recognize her from behind because of the hoodie. She snatched the crystal as feet rapidly approached. Just as his shadow fell over her, she vanished.  
~  
"Ethan, do you have any idea why I worry so much?"

The teen shrugged, not looking at his mother. "You're my Mom?"

"You know mothers and caring aren't always synonymous." She sighed. "Do you have any idea how quickly General Ross will have Social Services take you?"

Ethan blinked. That never crossed his mind.

"You're still a minor, Ethan. They can take you, use you against your father. Who knows what plans they have when you turn eighteen."

Ethan ran a hand over his hair and silently asked Zordon to forgive him. "I'm not worried about him. I...don't have to."

"Ethan..."

He twisted his wrists, bringing the Zeonizers into existence. His mother's eyes went wide when she saw the symbols. Everyone with any kind of access to the outside world knew about the Power Rangers and their global defense against the monsters from space. His mother, having ties to an Avenger, was no exception.

"What..."

"This is what I've been doing. This is why I'm not afraid. And, no, I won't stop."

She stared at him in horrified fascination.

"Dad doesn't know. I wasn't supposed to tell you."

"Ethan, I can't...You..."

He hugged her. It's all he could do.  
~  
Ethan graduated half a year early and enrolled in NYU. Mike put his tech skills to the test and arranged to be his roommate for the Fall Semester. Ethan was still stuck at home, but at least now he couldn't get into too much trouble with being out on school nights.

Jackie and Jen would be roommates as well, uniting half the team. Mike would be in one of Alex's classes, and Jackie in one of Vika's. Ariel they would meet in the crowded school cafeteria. 

Come September, the team would have viable public reasons to meet outside the Command Center.

Alex, Ariel, and Vika were sure it would end horribly.  



	5. Parental Units

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anything not English is Google translate and I'm sorry.

Jackie didn't want to hang her coat, she wasn't going to be here long, but she didn't really want to track water into the place and give her mother something to clean. Jackie didn't get along with her parents these days, but that didn't mean she wanted to be a brat on purpose. Just when she had to be. So she kicked off her shoes and hung her rain coat and went to find her younger brother.

"Hey, runt," Tommy greeted as she leaned into his room. "What's up?"

"You keep calling me runt, I'm gonna stop giving you money."

"Oh most beloved elder sister, how has your day been?"

She snorted and plopped on the bed next to her fourteen year old brother. They were almost four years apart in age, and relatively close. She'd been the one to cover for all his idiot maneuvers growing up, and he'd been the one with such great ideas. He was the better child, who looked up to their uncle. She was just kinda a bitch who didn't bother to think she could live up to the legend. "How's school?"

"Same shit, different day. You?"

"I'm actually learning something, so go me." She dug the wad of money out of her pocket. "Sixty keep you in good shape for the month?"

"Yeah, thanks." For all their parents worked long and hard, there was still things they'd never been able to provide for their children. Tommy needed more than the three meals he got, so she kept him in snack money for the school vending machines and going out.

"The parentals working?"

"Yeah, but they'll be home at the same time and they're bringing Uncle."

Jackie rolled her eyes. "I'll leave before they show up, then."

Tommy just nodded. Jackie closed her eyes for a bit, relaxing to the sound of her brother breathing and the scratch of pencil on paper as he did his math homework. The last three years hadn't been easy, but if it meant her brother didn't have to worry about aliens and monsters, she'd keep fighting. 

It wasn't long before he was asking for homework help. She sat up and saw him through it before checking the time. 

"I'm making tracks before they get here."

"'Kay. I got a game in two weeks. Think you can make it?"

"I'll do my best."

Outside the apartment, she nearly ran into Steve.

"Good evening, Jacquelyn."

"Hey, Uncle. Would've stuck around, but I gotta jet."

"Are you sure? It'd be nice to have everyone at the table."

Her Ranger phone beeped at her. "That's work, and since I like getting paid..." She turned and left, not wanting to start something when she had a battle to get to.

She was just about to hit the street when she heard her parents call her name. She turned, gave her mother a quick kiss, and said she had work to get to.

"Since when did you have a job?" her father asked.

"Since I started college? I told you this?"

"Huh."

Jackie rolled her eyes and gave her mother another kiss on the cheek. "Love you, but the 90's called and they want their weave back."

"Child, I put you in this world...."

Jackie smirked. "And thanks to you, I won't be so easy to take out." Her phone beeped.

"Get to work," Melanie said with a laugh.

Jackie jogged off, found a good place to hide, and teleported away.

~

Ethan sprawled on the couch in the Command Center. Even though they all technically knew each other, it was still safer to speak about their Avenger parents away from where there may or may not be bugs.

"Dad wants to see me."

"Good?" Mike asked.

"Good. Except he lives in Avengers Tower."

The team winced.

"Yeah."

"He's your dad," Ariel said. "Take what you can get."

Ethan nodded. "I will."

~

Bruce had a hell of a time introducing the topic of his son to Tony Stark. He wasn't comfortable leaving the Tower if he could help it, but he knew how he and his teammates were about visitors. Paranoia didn't even begin to cover it. After a few false starts and a lot of long pauses, he got it out.

"That's it?" Tony asked. "You wanna see your kid in a safe place? Geeze, Bruce, why would I say no?"

They'd be meeting in a small, private lounge right below the Avenger floors. It was often used for meetings between Avengers and those not cleared for the residences. Though Bruce had a floor of his own just like everyone else, the others came to his floor and if someone pressured Ethan to plant bugs... Best to be safer than sorry.  
'  
Ethan was having fun talking all kinds of things with his dad. They kept in touch through e-mails, but this was best. About two hours in, his Ranger phone rang. "Hey, Ariel."

"Can you make it?" she asked, quiet and understanding.

"I don't really want to..."

"Then take what you can get and give nothin' back."

He grinned a little. "Okay. Be safe." He hung up and apologized.

"Ariel?" his father asked, a teasing note in his voice.

"Friend, dad. Strictly a friend. We were on a wait list for some lab use and if we don't take it when it comes up, it goes to the next group."

"If it's for school..."

Ethan snickered. "It's not. This is supervised lab time for experiments we wanna do for shits and giggles."

"That sounds like too much fun."

He grinned. "It is."  
~  
Natasha sat down across from James and folded her hands on the table to keep them empty and in sight. He raised an eyebrow at the motion, knowing exactly what it meant.

"What I'm about to tell you stays between us. You don't tell Steve. You don't tell Phil. You tell no one because it doesn't concern them."

He nodded once. "я понимаю."

"You have a daughter."

Natasha watched him process the information. They were in a safe house SHIELD didn't know about, left over from her Red Room days. No one alive knew of this place, not even Zoya. 

James was silently freaking out. He had a kid. A kid he didn't plan for and he doubted Natasha enjoyed being left to deal with it. Why was she telling him this? What did she want out of this?

She waited, knowing this wasn't going to go over easy or quickly.

"She's, what, twenty?"

"Nineteen." She pulled a picture from her coat. "Viktoriya. Zoya Aliyeva did most of the raising, but Vika knows we're her parents."

"Cobra's alive?"

"And an elementary school teacher, if you'll believe that on top of everything else."

He blinked and focused on the picture. "She's beautiful. How many of her boyfriends have you killed?"

Natasha pouted. "None. She won't date and give me or Zoya the chance."

James snorted. "Smart." He glanced up at her. "You waited until I was stable enough to meet her."

She nodded. "Her life is complicated enough as it is. We've kept her safe, but not naive."

"I wouldn't doubt that." He looked at the photo again. "Is she different?"

"Not as much as us, but if someone pays attention, they'll notice her stamina."

"When can I meet her?"

"Next weekend, barring the end of the world."

He couldn't wait.  
'  
Vika sat on the top of the couch and let her leg bounce. "Did you tell him 'bout my extracurricular activities?"

Natasha shook her head. "No. One thing at a time, Vika."

"Right."

Natasha walked over and put a hand on her knee. "Calm."

Vika took a deep, slow breath. 

"Вы идете в бой с этими нервами?" (Do you go into battle with those nerves?)

"В бою я могу ударить вещи, пока они не перестанут двигаться." (In battle I can hit things until they stop moving.)

Natasha muttered about youth as she opened the door.

"Do I look nervous?" James asked by way of greeting.

Behind him, Zoya nodded with a smirk.

"Yes," Natasha answered without hesitating. She stepped aside to let them in, hiding a smile as he tried to fix his hair.

He caught sight of Vika and slouched. "Look at you, perfectly poised and here I am-"

Her smile was shy but her voice sure. "Looking like my father."

James smiled. Yeah, this wouldn't be so bad.

~

Alex swung the door open to his dorm and gaped. "Dad?"

Beneath sunglasses and ball cap, Clint Barton smirked. "Hey, punk."

Alex quickly invited his father in and gave him a hug.

"Would've come by sooner, but the job isn't kind to me."

"You're here, that's enough." Alex didn't know what his dad was involved in. He learned never to ask. Now, however, he suspected a few things.

Clint shrugged his backpack off and pulled a large bag of fast food out.

"Okay, best parent ever," Alex declared as he dug in.

Clint snorted. "You say that to whoever feeds you."

"I'm a growing boy."

"Yeah, I hope not, because then you'll be taller than me. I'd hate to have to shorten you."

"Then I'd just get kick ass prosthetics."

"Who said anything about your legs?"

Alex gave his dad a look and took a huge bite out of his burger.

Clint chuckled and sat at the desk chair while Alex perched on his bed. "Why NYU?"

"Wanted to live in a big city. The small towns were great and all, but this is fun."

"You got a major?"

Alex shook his head. "No. Required classes for now. I'll decided later."

"Going to college just to say you went?"

"Yeah. If I go into nursing, I can get a whole bunch of scholarships through mom." He shrugged. "It'd be easy, I know a lot as it is."

"And it's not like it'll be hard to find a job."

"True."

Clint took what time he could to catch up on his son's life. He wasn't the best father in the world, but he did what he could. He was just grateful Alex was happy with that.

~

"Pep?"

She looked over at him. "Yes?"

"There's something I need to tell you. Something I probably should've mentioned a while ago, but it's been a secret so long and it's safer that way because, God, if Stane ever knew..."

"Tony. Breath. Are you dying?"

"No. I promised to tell you right away from now on."

"Since you mentioned Stane, it doesn't have to do with SHIELD or the Avengers."

Tony sat next to her and showed her his personal tablet. It was so heavily encrypted, even she wasn't allowed access. On the screen was a picture of him, Jen, and Mike. Jen was on Mike's back and the four armed creature had made finger masks and hand horns on Tony. It was obvious Mike was Tony's son, and Jen shared the coloring.

Pepper stared at the image for a long time. Tony got nervous but didn't move or say a word. He knew this could break their relationship, knew this long secret was enough to break her trust. But this was Pepper. She deserved to know. She stood by him all this time, knew things about him no one else did. He knew, even if she broke up with him, she would still take this secret with her to the grave. She might not ever trust him the same, but she wouldn't betray his trust.

"You three look happy."

"I don't think I could be anything but happy around them. They both so hyper and smart, in a few years no one will be able to keep up with them."

"What're their names?"

"Jennifer and Michael. Twins, and their mother curses me for that some days." He glanced up at her than down. "They were an accident, but Abigail kept them. She didn't want them to be known as my kids, though, knew it was dangerous. I see 'em when I can, make sure they have what they need."

Pepper raised an eyebrow. "And whatever they want?" 

"Uh, within reason? They don't ask for anything but what time I can give them."

"How old are they?"

"Seventeen. They just started NYU. They were coasting through high school, but they got bored and decided to challenge themselves a little."

"Tony, I kept track of your schedule for years. How did you manage..."

"Rhodey. He was there when I found out. He covers for me when I can't just wander away." He ran a hand through his hair. "I've spent so long keeping them secret and safe, it wasn't until they moved to the same city as me that I realized..."

"Are you going to publicly claim them when they're older?"

"Only if I have to. Being Tony Stark was enough to have a hit put on me by Stane. Being Iron Man, an Avenger? They don't have to look over their shoulders, wonder who they should trust. I want it to stay like that."

Pepper leaned over the table and kissed him softly. "Tell me about them."

"They're sarcastic little shits with almost everyone. Mike's got an engineers mind like me, and Jen's more into physics." He spoke of everything he could think of, running tangents of stories of their lives. 

Pepper took it all in with a small smile. He was so proud of them, cared so much. It was obvious he never bought their love. That their picture together had no gadgets, had nothing to do with money or science, spoke volumes. He was happy to be in their lives. She could respect the secret and his need to keep it. This...this was worthy of whatever trust he sacrificed for their safety.

~

"What's got you two in a snit?" Ariel asked.

"Oh, god, you sound so old sometimes," Jackie said. "Uncle convinced Eth's dad that letting us meet could help me make "good" friends. Apparently the friends I have now can't possibly be good influences because I still act like I'm fifteen."

Ethan huffed. "Do you have any idea who hard it'll be, pretending we don't know each other?"

Vika shrugged. "Have fun with it."

"How?" Jackie demanded.

Mike smirked. "Act like you find the other attractive. It'll make 'em regret the decision."

Jackie slung an arm over Ethan's shoulders. "You are a wonderful friend and I'm glad you're one of us. But I'm not going to pretend to date you just to traumatize my uncle."

Ethan nodded. "We couldn't pull it off without laughing hysterically. Besides, I don't like the idea of stressing out Dad."

"Always a good point," Jen said.

Alex used his spoon to launch ice cubes from his cup into Mike's. "Just be yourselves, guys. You'll get scolded, Jackie, if you act out of character."

"Uncle doesn't know me well enough to know I'm not a complete bit-ca most of the time." She censored herself because of the kids at the next table.

"Then make him regret that," Ariel offered. "Show him you're decent if treated decent."

Vika scrunched her face. "But that's not fun."

"No, but it's less suspicious."

Jackie looked at Ethan. "Oreo poker?"

He nodded. "Oreo poker."

~

They were brought up to the room below the Avengers residences that weekend. The rest of the team would just have to do without them if the Power Rangers were needed. It was possible, but not preferred. There was a reason for seven Power Rangers.

Jackie narrowed her eyes at Ethan after the introductions. "Nice shoelaces."

Ethan grinned. "Thanks, I got them from the president."

She held out a hand. "Slytherin."

He took it and shook it once. "Ravenclaw. Castiel."

She shrugged. "Sam. Artemis."

"Poseidon."

"What are you two going on about?" Steve asked.

Jackie barely glanced at him. "Making sure we're not gonna snag on any pop-culture preferences. Star Wars, classic."

"Star Trek, reboot."

"We can't be friends. Not until JJ Abrams grows up about Kirk's characterization."

"And lens flare, I know."

Jackie pointed at him. "Don't ever bring up the reboot and we can chill."

"Done."

"Oreo poker?"

"I got one of those Costco boxes of candy bars for monopoly."

"Half an hour of poker, then monopoly because that game doesn't end." She dug the new deck of cards and the package of Oreos out of her bag. "Are we dealing you two in?"

Bruce agreed and Steve decided to go with it. Might be fun.

Though the two Rangers knew a lot about each other, they still found things to talk about. The two adults added things here and there, but were glad to see the duo getting along. Jackie was a trash talker but Ethan's wit was lightening fast. 

Monopoly turned into Avengers against teenagers. It ended with two sugar high college students who made horrible decisions and ended up over acting their reactions until they crashed.

"I'll get them back to their dorms," Steve said when Jackie didn't lift her head for her turn.

The two Avengers cleaned up most of the mess while the teens shuffled about. When Bruce went into the communal kitchen and dumped the two dozen candy bars on the counter, Clint raised an eyebrow.

"Candy bar monopoly."

"That...sounds like a horrible idea with this group."

Bruce nodded. "Yeah, I remember the last time Tony kept Park Place from Natasha."

Clint snorted. "You'd think the man with a former heart condition would know better when it comes to a ninja assassin." He snagged a Twix. "How'd it go?"

"Ethan enjoyed himself. Steve spent a lot of time trying to hide his surprise. Jackie's a good kid, she's just..."

"A teenager?"

Bruce chuckled. "Yeah. It probably helped when Ethan had an attitude."

"You think they'll actually spend time together after this, though?"

"They traded phone numbers and are friends already on Facebook?"

Clint shrugged. "Good sign, at least."

"Hopefully. I'm going to bed. Those two aren't the only ones who regret eating that much sugar."

Clint chuckled and grabbed Phil and Nat's favorite candies before leaving the kitchen as well.


	6. Chapter 6

It was bound to happen, they were only surprised it took so long. The Power Rangers and Avengers in the same fight. The Machine Empire and Doctor Doom decided to attempt a temporary alliance and take out both their enemies. 

"Do not cover your parents!" Ariel ordered. "If they have any kind of deja vu, we're potentially screwed."

"And not in the fun, sexy way, either," Mike said. "I'll watch Hawkeye's six."

"I got Cap," Alex said. "Jen, take Widow. Ethan, cover Winter."

Given Thor and Tony were fliers, there was no keeping a real eye on them. Hulk didn't really need the back-up. The team activated the voice masks, which combined the pitch and octaves of the males or females to render themselves untraceable. The referred to each other by color and hacked into the Avenger comms to keep plans from clashing.

"I've got eyes on Doom!" Tony shouted. He let loose a flurry of repulser blasts. Doom dodged-

Right into a Zeo sword. 

Jackie ripped up, cleaving the body almost in half. It sparked and dropped to the ground. "Machine. Damn!"

"That was always a possibility," Natasha said.

"Plus side," Mike said, "the Doom bots are lost without a signal."

"Let's clean them up and then deal with the Machine Empire," Steve ordered.

When nothing but robotic rubble littered the streets, the two teams met by SHIELD's mobile command.

"You know," Tony said, flipping the facemask up, "everyone knows who the Avengers are. But you guys are still a mystery."

The Purple Zeo stepped forward, clearly the leader in this instance. "To quote, the mask isn't for us, but to protect the people we love."

Steve frowned. "We wouldn't do anything to betray you."

The Ranger nodded. "At the moment. But when our enemies use one of us against the other? When it's a choice between your team or mine? Or the world?" She shook her head and stepped back. "No. This is our home and we'll protect it. That's all that matters."

With that, they teleported away.

Tony shrugged and flipped the mask down. "I tried. Thor, race ya."  
'  
Natasha slipped out of the Tower and took a winding path to her daughter. When she got there, Vika was waiting, sitting as close to Zoya as possible. The nineteen year old hopped up before the door was closed and hugged her mother.

"Вы всегда будете первым." (You will always be first)

"да, вы тоже." (yes, you too)

They stayed there for a long moment. Natasha understood Vika's secrecy, it was for the exact same reason as her own. If anyone knew Black Widow had a daughter, and with Winter Solider... SHIELD would look into Zoya's background, would eventually find the lie. The connection. The truth.

When they eventually sat down, Vika had a point of contact with both women. "We have an out," the teen said slowly, quietly. "If it ever comes down to the world or us. We can save our families, then make an attempt at saving what's left of Earth."

"Someone to fight for," Natasha said.

Vika nodded. "At least someone saved. But she does speak for all of us. We're protecting our families. I've never had to suffer the fallout of what either of you did or do. You shouldn't suffer for what I do."

They squeezed her hands. Because while they would be able to handle whatever came their way, it would still be a storm to bear. It would still hurt. They still had each other and the truth. That was enough.

~

Ariel's parents were never getting back together. She'd accepted this a long time ago. When she learned of love and one night stands, she realized what she was the product of. But it never mattered, because her parents loved her. They were still friends, could eat dinner at the same table for her sake. Neither begrudge the other the affection she showed, though they always made sure the other knew whatever secret she trusted one with. They were sneaky spy parents like that.

She took what time she could get with them. Her little mis-quote about masks protecting loved ones struck a chord and she'd been asked home to her mother's place for a meal. Though they could tell her nothing of their work, they could ask her of school and friends and was there a date they could threaten yet?

Ariel mocked glared at her parents. "One day, I'm gonna ask one of my friends to pretend to be my date, and warn them in advance all the scary things you'd do. Just so they aren't impressed."

Melinda looked at Phil. "Is that a challenge?"

He looked thoughtful. "It does sound like one. But I'd hate to bring out the big guns for anything but the real thing."

She nodded. "This is true. We'll have to remember this, though."

Phil gave his daughter a bland smile. "Oh, we will."

Ariel stabbed her steak. "Freakin' spies. One day, I'm actually gonna surprise you."

~

Clint leaned back in the desk chair and hooked his finger on the yellow hood of a sweater that was way too small for his son. The Despicable Me minion design sold it as definitely not Alex's.

The teenager trailed off and scowled. "Damn it, Viktoriya."

Clint raised an eyebrow.

"She's in the study group I told you about. She lives off campus, but since we were up so late, she just spent the night in Jen's room a floor down. Left her jacket here since she didn't need it, I guess."

"I don't know if I should be proud or disappointed."

"What, proud I'm in a study group or disappointed this wasn't evidence of a girlfriend?"

"Yes."

There was a banging on the door, followed by a wail. "Aleeeeex!"

"That's Jen," he said with a sigh as he got up to unlock and open the door. "Yes, pretty pretty princess?"

"Shut up, jock strap. I let Mikey borrow my chem book and he said he left it with you?"

"Yeah. Lemme dig it out." He turned and went to the shelf above the desk. "Dad, Jen Jones. Jen, my daddy."

She offered a smile and a hand. "Afternoon, Xander's daddy."

Clint took the hand and noted the callouses. "Nice to meet you. Name's Clint."

She nodded. "And whatever story he told you about that jacket, it's really Vika's and he wouldn't touch her because her girlfriend scares Alex."

Alex held the heavy chemistry book as if to throw it. "First off, no I'm not, second, they aren't together."

She rolled her eyes and sucker punched him lightly before grabbing the book. "We're all scared Ariel will kill us with her brian. But, yeah, Alex is a total gentleman. Pity."

Clint snorted as Alex shoved her out. "Go bug your brother, that's why he exists."

"Nice ta meet ya, Xander's daddy," she said kindly. She sent Alex a haughty expression. "Hope you trip, muscle head." 

When the door was secure, Clint gave his son an amused look. "Such nice friends you have."

"Jen's actually a genius, she just doesn't brag until someone needs a smack down."

Clint looked at the desk. "You aren't in chemistry this semester."

Alex nodded. "Yeah, but I'm taking it in spring. Mike gave me his syllabus and I'm working on it when the weather sucks and no one's around to entertain me."

Clint snorted. His kid wasn't stupid, but he was a little strange with the way he learned. Clint blamed the kid growing up in Montana on a farm the first five years of his life. The vast emptiness would be enough to drive the boy insane. Yeah. That was it.

~

Every year since they'd become Rangers, the teens had dressed up as Avengers for Halloween. They never went as their parents, always one of the others. This year, volunteering at NYU's Treat Street, they went all out more than ever before.

Alex, being the largest, was the Hulk. He wore green and painted his face, with a green beanie and rubber Hulk hands. Ethan went as Iron Man, and Jen as Thor. Mike wore under armor and dressed as Hawkeye, while Jackie was Black Widow. Ariel changed clothes on campus to be Winter Soldier, and Vika was probably the prettiest and most realistic Captain America there. 

They did NOT tell their parents what they really went as. That would get lectures for half of them, and shot at for the others.

The Treat Street was a way for kids to have a safe trick or treating. The teammates built their own booth and made sure have the largest variety of candy. They didn't win any of the school's awards that night, but they knew they were the most visited booth.

November first found them passed out in Ethan and Mike's room. The two roommates had pressed their beds together and Jen slept with her back to her brother. Jackie was taking up most of Ethan's bed, and the youngest Ranger was riding more of the center than his own bed. The triptych were on the huge air mattress Mike had for such sleepovers. 

Alex dangled a candy necklace over Vika's mouth. "Breakfast time."

She shoved at him and groaned. "No more candy. Ever."

Alex chuckled dropped the necklace back on the bed. "Here." He handed her the straw to a camelback and she guzzled down most of the contents. After refilling it with some of the water bottles in the minifridge, he tossed the small backpack at the pushed together beds.

"Mother fucker," Jackie grumbled as she fumbled with the thing. "Aim sucks, douche nozzle."

"But I hit my target."

"I'm gonna cut you," Jackie muttered before sucking down the ice water. She passed it along the bed, waking the others as it went.

"Where's Ari?" Mike asked, still bleary.

"Breakfast run," Alex answered. "Wanted me to wake you bums."

They started to rotate through the shower, changing into the spare clothes they'd brought. They would've teleported to the Power Chamber so they could all shower at once, but they were trying to not abuse their powers to completely.

Ariel returned when Mike was taking his turn in the shower. The three girls had gone and Mike had won odd man out for first go. Ariel filled a cup with ice and water before dumping over the shower rod.

"I'M GONNA KILL WHOEVER FUCKING DID THAT!"

The team laughed and when Mike stormed out, he glared at them all but was unable to figure out who did it. Ethan took his turn while the genius boy scooped up a bowl of mixed fruit. Ariel had decided oatmeal, fruit, and orange juice would make them feel better. She wasn't wrong.

The group cleaned up and lingered in the room for most of the day. They had nowhere to be and no need to go their separate ways just yet. They actually liked each other and knew being friends outside the battlefield wouldn't hurt.

Who else could possibly understand them?


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask me no questions about my absence, and I will tell you no lies.

Melinda dialed her daughter and wasn't entirely too surprised when she got voice mail.

"This is Ariel and it's the twenty first century, you know what to do."

She rolled her eyes. "It looks like I'll be home for Thanksgiving. Give me a call." She hung up and thought nothing of her daughter's phone being off. Ariel was an adult with her own life.

Three hours later, Melinda was worried.  
'  
Ariel sliced off the head of the spiky alien and whirled around to stab the presence behind her. She paused just at the edge of the uniform, only because it was a twin of her own in green.

"Ariel."

"Who're you?"

The Ranger cursed and fired a blaster shot over Ariel's shoulder. "Teammate. Friend. Here to get you outta here."

Ariel considered it. Best offer so far. "Betray me and die."

"Ditto."

They fought side by side, with a sniper somewhere, until the arena was in chaos and the control cuffs were finally broken. Ariel hit her knees as her identity came rushing back.

"Ariel!"

"Fine. Memories coming back." She growled and forced her legs to work.

Alex landed beside them and used his bulk to break the rampaging aliens from trampling them. "We get out of the Arena, we can teleport."

They went with the tide, cutting down anything that thought they could use the chaos to their advantage and kill a Power Ranger. Once outside the gates of the Arena, they teleported to the Power Chamber.

Ariel demorphed and threw up.

Vika ordered Alex to help the others in Madagascar while she made sure the oldest Ranger was healed. "C'mon, six steps to medical."

Ariel took the hand up and leaned on the Russian girl. "I don'..." She threw up again, legs shaking.

"Alpha, get the suppressants," Vika ordered as she got her friend on a bio-bed.

The robot injected the bile suppressants to keep Ariel from bringing up anymore stomach contents. The twenty year old moaned and rolled on her side, curling up.

Vika ran a Power diagnostic while Alpha injected pain relievers and healing nanobots. "Zordon, how do I fix this?"

The hologram of their mentor appeared at her side. "This is something she must come to terms with herself."

Vika climbed on the bio-bed and put an arm around Ariel. "Tell me."

"Not all of them were monsters," Ariel said, still in metaphysical pain. "They were like me, taken and forced to fight."

Vika squeezed her friend's hand. King Mondo had taken Ariel, threatened to make her an evil Ranger. When it couldn't be done, he sent her to the Ragion Arena. It was pretty much a gladiator fight fest.

Power Rangers weren't meant to kill innocents, no matter the situation.

"Ariel, they would've killed you." 

"I know," she wailed, twitching as her powers fought to calm with the new reality.

"You don't deserve to die so they could live. Think about it, Ariel. Humans are considered one of the weakest creatures. If they couldn't beat you, if they fell to you, they wouldn't have lasted long anyway."

Ariel squeezed Vika's hand in return.

"You deserve to live. You've earned these powers. You have friends who came for you, family that would've hunted for you until the ends of the universe."

Vika could feel the Purple Zeo powers shift and shudder. They grew deeper, darker, tainted by the death of innocents.

Ariel cried and Vika held her close. Alpha administered relief as he could. When the team ran in, unmorphing as they moved, Ariel flinched away from them. 

Alex lay in front of her and draped his arm over her as well. "Hey, we're your friends. We're here for you."

Mike hopped up on the foot of the bed and squeezed one of her ankles. "You're here. You have us. That's all that matters."

Jackie and Ethan pushed two bio-bed to each side and the team lay around their leader while her mind and powers found a balance. Just as they saved Zordon a year and half ago, they let their powers bolster her. They stayed for two hours, ignoring their own hunger and exhaustion.

When Ariel was relatively stable, she murmured a thanks. The younger quartet got up and left, knowing the other two members of the triptych would see her through. 

Alex soothed sweat soaked hair from her forehead. "C'mon, lets get you home."

She nodded slowly and took their help up.

Alpha came up to them with a view screen. "Rangers, there's an issue with taking Ariel home."

Her dad was pacing the living room of her penthouse, phone to his ear, her cell hooked to a small laptop. Ariel groaned and sat back down.

Vika got in front of Ariel and held her head up between her hands. "Do you want to come clean to your parents? Or do you want us to cover for you?"

"Being forced into the arena will be explanation enough," Alex offered.

Ariel shook her head. "But why was I chosen? Even if we use the fact of my parents being connected to the Avengers, why wouldn't they have been told? Why not pit the Rangers and Avengers against each other?" She fisted her hands. "I'll come clean." She knew it would destroy what trust her parents had in her. She'd been doing this for three years. They worried about her as it was. Now...

Alex squeezed her wrist. "We'll go with you. Our Ranger uniforms will keep our identities safe."

Ariel wanted to protest, but Vika covered her mouth. "No. We're looking after you until you can do it yourself."

Ariel sighed and accepted. She was propped up between them and they teleported away.  
'  
Phil raised his sidearm before he could really register the sound and soft light. He instantly lowered it when his eyes landed on the unmistakable form of his daughter. "Ariel! Mel, I'll call you back." He dropped his phone and was in front of his daughter a moment later. "What happened?"

Her face fell, then the tears came. He gathered her in his arms and felt her cling to him like she hadn't done since she was eleven after a nightmare. He looked at the two strangers, and recognized them as Zeo Rangers.

The lean female in green spoke, slow and steady. "Ariel was taken by King Mondo in an attempt to create an evil Power Ranger. When he couldn't turn her against us, he sent to the Ragion Arena."

The tall, muscular male glanced at him. "It's basically a galactic gladiator arena. Her memories were locked away. She was forced to fight for her life."

Ariel shuddered in his arms and a sob broke through.

"Power Rangers are to never take the lives of innocents, no matter the situation."

Phil froze.

No.

Ariel clung to him tighter and his first instinct was to hold her closer. Silent sobs wracked her body and her despair was enough to make his own eyes tear. He dipped his head to whisper. "I'm here. I've got you."

The two Rangers focused on their teammate, ready to help in anyway. After a few minutes, Ariel started to calm down a bit.

"Let's go see your mother," Phil said quietly.

She nodded against his chest.

The Red Ranger motioned the Green Ranger to the door. "We'll bring you there. Ariel's powers are already in flux. It's best to get this over with as soon as possible so they'll settle." He picked up her cell phone and small computer attached to it, as well as Phil's cell.

The Green Ranger locked the door and grabbed Ariel's bag. They put their hands on his shoulders and Ariel's back.

Teleporting was an interesting sensation. Not like the bifrost, but still the feeling of rapid movement.

They landed in the living room and Melinda aborted her reach for her sidearm in favor of bolting up from the couch. Careful of her arm, she bracketed Ariel's back without asking what was wrong.

The Green Ranger again quietly explained things. Melinda's head ducked against the greasy mess of their daughter's hair.

The Red Ranger put a hand on Ariel's shoulder. "Couch, Ariel. Far more comfortable."

Phil got her settled against Melinda's good side and made sure to keep a hand on her before looking at the two Rangers. "You said her powers were in flux."

The Green Ranger nodded. "The Purple Zeo Powers are adapting to their wielder being tainted. While she has every right to life and those powers, Rangers are so powerful because of their Good Hearts."

The Red Ranger started to pace slowly. "When it comes to being a Power Ranger, metaphysics are involved. When we destroyed minions and monsters, the power within them is transferred to us and purified by our powers. The same goes for any life we take. Because the aliens she killed were essentially innocent, it goes against everything we stand for."

"We've already made sure Ariel won't suffer metaphysically," the Green Ranger said. "She'll be emotional over the next few days, due to her actions and because she believes she betrayed your trust in keeping her identity a secret."

"But she will recover?" Melinda asked softly.

Both Rangers traded glances. The Red Ranger spoke carefully. "She has the potential. It's up to her."

The Green Ranger's hands clenched and unclenched. "She knows she did what she had to for her survival. She knows we'd never judge her for it, and that we'd rather have her alive and with us. But she felt every death. Minions and monsters have zero potential for good. Unless the aliens she fought were created for the sole purpose of destruction, with no hope for any kind of positivity, then the death counted against her."

It was obvious that they were trying to make Phil and Melinda understand. It was so very obvious they wanted to help Ariel more than they were able. They wanted to fight the battle for her, make sure she made the decision that would leave her strong, not broken. But they recognized Phil and Melinda as her parents, as the ones she truly needed to heal.

The Red Ranger left a small device on the coffee table. "This will contact us, if things get worse and we don't sense it through the powers."

The Green Ranger lay a hand on Melinda's broken arm. "I shouldn't do this, but..." Light laced around and into the cast. "Still broken, but it won't pain you."

Melinda nodded her thanks, knowing the relief was meant solely for Ariel's benefit. Melinda needed a clear head, and Ariel needed her mother.

The two Rangers cast one last worried look at Ariel before teleporting away.

Phil shifted closer to his daughter. They would see this though. It could be no other way.


End file.
